- New candidates reach highest total in 12 months
- Big rise in new travel jobs
- Small fall in placements
Busy start to 2026 for travel recruitment
The number of new candidates searching for travel roles jumped by almost two thirds in the first month of 2026, according to the latest figures from C&M Travel Recruitment.
January's total was up by 62 per cent from December 2025 and was the second highest figure in 20 months behind only January 2025.
There was also a strong increase in new travel job vacancies in January with a 61 per cent rise from December. Despite this, last month's total dipped by 38 per cent from last January.
Finally, there was a small decrease in the number of candidates being placed in new travel jobs last month, with a nine per cent fall from December 2025 and a 12 per cent dip from January 2025.
Speaking about the stats, Barbara Kolosinska, Co-Owner and Managing Director at C&M Travel Recruitment, said: "For the upcoming year to be successful for travel recruitment, we need a healthy influx of new applicants and job openings. So to see candidates and vacancies record month-on-month increases of more than 60 per cent each in January is incredibly encouraging.
"This is a strong start to the year and we're hopeful that these figures will convert into positive numbers of new job placements in the months ahead. But what we need is consistency, so we'll be watching closely to see if this momentum can be maintained throughout the spring."
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All figures are drawn from the month’s new vacancies advertised with C&M Travel Recruitment.
C&M Travel Recruitment was established in 1998 and is the largest and most successful specialist travel recruitment company in the UK.
For further information please contact: Owen Mckeon (Marketing and Operations Manager - 0161 238 4497 / owen@candm.co.uk) or Barbara Kolosinska (Co-Owner and Managing Director - 07507 602 069 / barbara@candm.co.uk).